(Knoxville, TN) – Concordia baseball opened their season on Friday afternoon with a pair of contests in Tennessee. The Cardinals turned in a solid offensive performance with two big wins to start the year.
Game 1 – CUAA 7, JU 2
Tyson Kleinfelter started game 1 on the mound, notching 12 strikeouts in 7 innings. The Cardinals scored in the 1st when Drew Fleming hit an RBI single scoring Jordan Sherman.
Concordia struck again in the 4th when Justin Kozlowski hit a solo home run. Tyson Kleinfelter continued to make strikeouts and took a no-hitter into the 7th until Johnson finally got their first hit.
The Cardinals had a 4-run 7th inning, starting with a 2-RBI triple by Curtis Townsend. Jordan Sherman tacked on a 2-RBI double to make it a 6-0 lead.
Kyle Winslow and Kenneth (Dave) Rozmys combined to finish the game on the mound. Johnson broke the shutout in the 8th, but Concordia answered when Caleb Harmond scored on a wild pitch. CUAA secured the win by a final score of 7-2.
Game 2 – CUAA 11, JU 2
Mackenzie Martin opened game 2 on the mound, notching a strikeout. Concordia plated 3 runs in the 1st, starting with Jordan Sherman scoring on an error. Justin Kozlowski added a 2-RBI single to drive in Drew Fleming and Jake Ryan.
Evan Jasiak came in to pitch the 2nd, recording a strikeout while holding Johnson to 2 runs in the inning. Timothy Pomaville came on in the 3rd, going 4 innings with 4 strikeouts.
Drew Fleming hit a sacrifice fly in the 5th to score Aaron West. In the 6th, Curtis Townsend hit an RBI triple driving in Justin Kozlowski and then reached home on a wild pitch.
A 5-run 7th inning for Concordia extended their lead, starting with an RBI single from Justin Kozlowski. Jarrett Batanian hit an RBI double, Curtis Townsend singled to drive in Batanian, and Taishin Matsushita double scoring Townsend. Caleb Harmond used an RBI single to drive in Matsushita to close the inning.
Trey Acker closed out the 7th on the mound to secure the win.
Concordia will play Johnson again tomorrow at 5pm.
